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Paleoenvironments of the Upper Cretaceous Dinosaur Park Formation in Southern Alberta, Canada

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Paleoenvironments of the Upper Cretaceous Dinosaur Park Formation in Southern Alberta, Canada University of Calgary PRISM: University of Calgary's Digital Repository Graduate Studies Legacy Theses 2010 Paleoenvironments of the Upper Cretaceous Dinosaur Park Formation in southern Alberta, Canada Matson, Christopher Cody Matson, C. C. (2010). Paleoenvironments of the Upper Cretaceous Dinosaur Park Formation in southern Alberta, Canada (Unpublished master's thesis). University of Calgary, Calgary, AB. doi:10.11575/PRISM/18677 http://hdl.handle.net/1880/47721 master thesis University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission. Downloaded from PRISM: https://prism.ucalgary.ca UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY Paleoenvironments of the Upper Cretaceous Dinosaur Park Formation in southern Alberta, Canada by Christopher Cody Matson A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE DEPARTMENT OF GEOSCIENCE CALGARY, ALBERTA JANUARY, 2010 © Christopher Cody Matson 2010 The author of this thesis has granted the University of Calgary a non-exclusive license to reproduce and distribute copies of this thesis to users of the University of Calgary Archives. Copyright remains with the author. Theses and dissertations available in the University of Calgary Institutional Repository are solely for the purpose of private study and research. They may not be copied or reproduced, except as permitted by copyright laws, without written authority of the copyright owner. Any commercial use or re-publication is strictly prohibited. The original Partial Copyright License attesting to these terms and signed by the author of this thesis may be found in the original print version of the thesis, held by the University of Calgary Archives. Please contact the University of Calgary Archives for further information: E-mail: [email protected] Telephone: (403) 220-7271 Website: http://archives.ucalgary.ca ii Abstract Paleoenvironments of the Upper Cretaceous Dinosaur Park Formation are investigated using paleosols preserved in Dinosaur Provincial Park, southern Alberta, Canada. Seven different types of paleosols (pedotypes) are recovered and represent various aspects of an alluvial-coastal floodplain including well-drained distal dry floodplains, better-drained and topographically higher proximal dry floodplains, and seasonal wetlands. The stratigraphic distribution of these paleosols reveals three distinct paleolandscapes: predominantly well-drained habitats low in the formation give way to diverse habitats with numerous landscape positions, eventually becoming coal dominated, hydromorphic, and less diverse due to the increasing proximity of the Bear Paw Sea. Pedofeatures preserved within paleosols correspond to palynological, macrofloral, and sedimentological studies suggesting Dinosaur Park Formation paleoenvironments experienced warm-temperate to subhumid conditions with periods of significant precipitation and seasonality during the Late Cretaceous. The humid south-eastern coast of the United States, the tropical wet lowlands of Colombia, and the seasonal wetland habitats of Bangladesh serve as respectable modern analogs for Dinosaur Provincial Park during the Late Cretaceous. iii Acknowledgements I would like to thank all the persons involved with the guidance and preparation of this thesis, especially to Dr. Ron Spencer, without whom this thesis would not have been completed. I am deeply indebted to Dean Sandy Murphree, Dr. David Eaton, Dr. Charles Henderson, Dr. Jessica Theodor, and Robert Clegg whose guidance and council kept this thesis together. I am also deeply indebted to the many people who helped edit portions of this thesis including Dr. Ron Spencer, Dr. Andrew Leir, Dr. François Therrien, and Dr. Darla Zelenitsky. I also wish to thank the support staff of the Department of Geoscience, especially Cathy Hubble, without whom I would still be downloading forms and scratching my head. The field aspects of this thesis could not have been completed without the assistance of the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Palaeontology (RTMP) and especially Dr. Don Brinkman and Dr. François Therrien. I also need to thank the staff of the RTMP Field Station especially Philip Hofer, Andrew Hunt, and Donna Martin. For their tireless work in the field, I wish to thank Josh Pidkowa, Kohei Tanaka, Sofie Forsström, Lauren Andres, Annie Quinney, and Dr. Brinkman’s 2008 RTMP field volunteers. I also wish to thank the many persons who held me up and kept me going including Erik and Sara Katvala, Amanda McGee, Dr. Jessica Theodor, Keely Obert, Kirstin Brink, and of course my parents John and Kathy Matson. iv Dedication To my parents… Ad astra per aspera. v Table of Contents Approval Page ..................................................................................................................... ii Abstract .............................................................................................................................. iii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ iv Table of Contents ............................................................................................................... vi List of Tables ................................................................................................................... viii List of Figures and Illustrations ......................................................................................... ix CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................12 1.1 Introductory statement .............................................................................................12 1.2 Thesis objectives ......................................................................................................17 1.3 Organization of this thesis .......................................................................................17 1.4 Study Area ...............................................................................................................18 CHAPTER TWO: GEOLOGIC SETTING .......................................................................21 2.1 Regional Stratigraphy ..............................................................................................21 2.2 Regional Geology ....................................................................................................24 2.2.1 Paleogeography ...............................................................................................24 2.2.2 Paleodrainage ..................................................................................................25 2.2.3 Previous Paleoclimatic Study of Campanian southern Alberta .......................26 2.3 Previous Geologic Research in Dinosaur Provincial Park .......................................27 2.3.1 Sedimentology .................................................................................................27 2.3.2 Paleontology ....................................................................................................28 2.3.2.1 Stratigraphic Distribution of Vertebrate Fossil Taxa in the Upper Belly River Group ...................................................................................29 CHAPTER THREE: MATERIALS AND METHODS ....................................................32 3.1 Stratigraphic sections and their measurement .........................................................32 3.2 Field sampling and preliminary identification of pedotypes ...................................32 3.3 Thin section analysis and description ......................................................................37 3.4 Determination of clay mineralology ........................................................................37 3.5 Geochemical analysis ..............................................................................................38 3.6 Pedotypes .................................................................................................................40 CHAPTER FOUR: FEATURES OF DINOSAUR PARK FORMATION PALEOSOLS ............................................................................................................42 4.1 Colour of paleosols ..................................................................................................42 4.1.1 Groundwater and surface water gley ...............................................................42 4.2 Bioturbation .............................................................................................................43 4.3 Microstructure and Fabric of Groundmass ..............................................................44 4.4 Clay accumulations ..................................................................................................45 4.5 Slickensides .............................................................................................................48 4.6 Ferruginous pedofeatures .........................................................................................48 4.7 Siderite .....................................................................................................................49 4.8 Coal ..........................................................................................................................49
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